\u201cI\u2019m very proud to be the manager of this club with the way Chelsea have handled it,\u201d Lampard said on Sky Sports.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were very quick to respond with the help of the hotel and there\u2019s a lot more work going on with the foundation, with link-ups and with getting in touch with fans.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are a lot of people at Chelsea who have really stood up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chelsea\u2019s first-team squad were among the first to come to the rescue when they made a sizeable donation to the club\u2019s foundation in late March in a move to help provide support to local hospitals and those affected by the virus. This was way long before the debate over whether Premier League players should be taking pay cuts.<\/p>\n
And while some clubs have been heavily rapped on the knuckles for furloughing staff at the taxpayers\u2019 expense during the suspension of the season, Chelsea were not at all party to this and drew praise for placing their Millennium Hotel at the disposal of the NHS in the early days of the crisis.<\/p>\n
Health Secretary Matt Hancock triggered controversy earlier this month by singling out Premier League footballers and urging them to sacrifice a portion of their pay to play their part in helping the cause, not having realised that plans were already being drawn up by the League\u2019s players behind the scenes to do so.<\/p>\n
Lampard said, \u201cFootball players will try and do the right thing. I think they needed some time and the politicians jumped the gun while things were being prepared. It was unfortunate that picture got painted.<\/p>\n
\u201cSince then a lot of players have stood up. The situation is not perfect but, knowing players, that\u2019s been a very good reaction and it\u2019s ongoing and it shouldn\u2019t stop. If there\u2019s a light at the end of this tunnel it\u2019s how we give back.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s easy said and much harder done but there\u2019s been a lot of gestures that have shown that.\u201d<\/p>\n
This being his first season as Chelsea boss, the 41-year-old also said he had to have trust in his players to follow the fitness plans and advice given to them by coaches during the lockdown.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s very hard to absolutely manage that,\u201d he said. \u201cYou can ask them to run an hour a day but some are able to do some open running and some can\u2019t so there\u2019s a big element of trust in the players.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe may have a short pre-season coming up so the players need to be ready. But they are professionals so you have to trust that they will want to come back as well as they can.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lampard also paid tribute to former Chelsea goalkeeper and England World Cup winner Peter Bonetti, who died on Sunday aged 78.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s very, very sad news I think for Chelsea obviously \u2013 he was a Chelsea legend \u2013 and for football in general because he was an England legend as well,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve got memories of watching him as a player and also meeting him and what a gentleman he was.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was working in hospitality upstairs when I first came to Chelsea and he was so friendly, he had time for everybody. He was an absolute gentleman and it\u2019s a huge loss for Chelsea and for football.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"